Funding diverted to road repairs
The local authority is also looking at introducing text, Twitter, and email alerts for residents in flood-prone areas, especially Clonakilty, which bore the brunt of the damage in the region.
Roughly €2.5m of the estimated €7.6m damage caused countywide to non- national roads occurred in West Cork.
Assistant county manager Brendan Fogarty said urgent works to roads, bridges, and culverts in Clonakilty would cost at least €1m.
The council is ploughing ahead with repair work — even though it has not yet received a cent from the Government.
Yesterday, work was under way on repairing a riverside wall in Clonakilty. Some bridges in the town had also been underpinned.
Tony Mullane of the National Roads Authority promised his organisation would address any drainage problems it can when it carries out a forthcoming upgrade of the town’s bypass. He said he would be re-prioritising road upgrades in the region, moving funds already allocated to repair roads especially in the Clonakilty, Dunmanway, and Skibbereen areas.
He said it would be “a huge undertaking” to reinstate a road which was torn up by the flood in Rathbarry.
“It was shocking to see the damage done there and I don’t know yet when the road can be reopened, even on a temporary basis.”
He said the work would continue, even though he had received no news as of yet of special funding from the Office of Public Works.
Cllr Donal O’Rourke (FF) warned that “the OPW by its nature is extremely slow and it will be a long struggle to get money for damaged roads”.
Mr Fogarty said the council would “keep the pressure on” by continuing to apply for more and more river dredging licences from Inland Fisheries Ireland.
